Marantz, celebrated by us for its surround receivers, will sponsor a concert tour by violinist David Garrett, a young crossover artist who has been known to perform Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit." The tour will hit concert halls and theaters in 21 U.S. cities this month.

Corporate sponsorship of concert tours is not exactly new. Rock dinosaurs have been doing it for years. This arrangement is a good fit for both Marantz, as a company intimately involved in musical reproduction, and Garrett, with his rock star chic.

Garrett, a German, was discovered at age 9 by Yehudi Menuhim. Within a few years he was playing the big halls and recording for Deutsche Grammophon. GQ Germany named him Man of the Year for Music in 2009. The following year the Guinness Book of World Records named him World's Fastest Violinist for his performance of "Flight of the Bumblebee."

See Marantz/Garrett webpage, Marantz blog, and artist site.